sink down into light [private]

'Smudge, you idiot-,' a hiss from my cat told me he didn't love being called an idiot, but he didn't get a choice cause he was one, 'Go back to the Cabin. Eat some catnip, play with some poor kids shoelaces, whatever. Just go.'
If I hadn't already learned my lesson, I would have waved my hands at him, in a bad attempt to scare him away. But, as the frayed end of my heavy knit cardigan showed, I had learned my lesson. The jerk had jumped up and caught the wool with his teeth or nails or something and pulled strands loose. Since I was sort of crap at all those homely things like cooking and sewing and being a girl, there was no chance of me fixing it.
I could always ask some other person. Maybe there's a God of sewing. Or a Goddess of sewing. Sewing is supposed to be a girly thing isn't it?
Glaring at the cat which was barely visible in the darkness, I pursed my lips and folded my arms over my chest.
'Fine. Come. Be a stupid, stubborn little idiot. But you are totally finding some way to repay me for causing this damage to my cardigan.'

The night air was chilly, that was for sure. And not a nice sort of chilly, like the feeling of a slightly cold breeze on a clear day. Winter was here, everything was getting colder, and I did not have a high tolerance for the cold weather. I already had a sniffle. But it didn't matter- one night of cold night air wouldn't harm me anymore.
I was wearing a warm, heavy cardigan which had black and white skulls on it, over a "Pardon my French" T-Shirt I'd only just bought. I had very little clothes left after the Zombie Apocalypse, so I'd been forced to go shopping. For clothes. Ugh.
My jeans were new too, and I, like an idiot, had bought ones which had those natural tears and stuff. The tears were letting in the air, and making me colder, and I was pretty sure that my legs were going to be numb by the time I got where I was going. But hey, at least I knew my feet were warm and cosy, with my slipper socks and comfy converse.

Finally.
The lights had been drawing me in for hours, tempting in the distance. They were like little stars which had fallen from the sky, and then as they started to float upwards, only a few at a time, it was like they had found a way to return back to their home. I'd been intending to hang around in the Cabin for the night, maybe watch some films and eat some crap. It was awesome being able to do that again. Drink 6 packs of cola and watch movies and relax knowing that nothing was going to come through the doors or windows. The Zombie Apocalypse had sucked, so bad, and it had left a lot of people depressed and sad. But, the only way it had affected me had been that I now avoided horror movies (At least, that's what I hoped).
Plans had changed though. The lights in the distance had ended up being too tempting, so I'd made my way out to them and Smudge had ended up following. I hadn't wanted him around the fire and water- sure, the fire was only in small little tufts and the water was down the beach a little bit, but I was trying to keep my cat safe, and happy, and ok. I didn't want anyone else hurt. Being an unfeeling jerk was all well and good, but it didn't make me completely insensitive. People had died during the ZA, and some of them had been people I knew. Not well, but I had seen a couple of them around Camp.

Sitting down a few paces away from the tables with the lights sitting on them, I wasn't too bothered by the darkness. I had been, during the ZA, but now, everything was fine. Nothing would jump out. I could sit quietly in the darkness and watch people let off lanterns and just... watch.
Smudge had been a couple meters behind, probably trying to stay in the shadows, but now that I was sitting he padded over slowly and carefully, like he was worried about being shouted at. Which was weird, since Smudge was a cat which did not give a damn if he was given out too.
Rubbing my fingers together in his direction, I managed to get him to come close enough that I could rub his head, and then in his own time he stepped up and then sat down on my lap, purring quietly. He wasn't a loud purrer- he didn't like people knowing that he sometimes liked people, apparently. But he began purring, a steady, quiet rhythm that was like a little intone on the scene before me.

After a few minutes of watching people let off lanterns for the dead, I pulled the pack of cigarettes out of my pocket and opened the top. Pulling out the lighter first, I then pulled a cigarette out with my index finger and thumb, putting the end in my mouth and flicking the flint of the lighter. The flame flared up, and then it was being guided to the cigarette. Almost immediately I took a drag of the tobacco, savoring the stronger taste. Sometime in the last few weeks I'd changed my brand, too one which was much stronger.
I tried to tell myself it was cause the stronger one tasted better, but... I wasn't too sure at this point.
Whatever the reason, it didn't matter now though. Breathing out the smoke through my nose, I dropped the pack and lighter in my pocket and returned my hand to its place on top of Smudge's head.